Yeast extract for salt
The World Health Organization even set a target to reduce salt consumption by 30%, by the year 2025. To comply with this, governments around the world are asking food manufacturers to create products with less sodium. However, relevant alternatives to salt are not easy to find. Yeast extract is a great food ingredient to replace salt as it produces a natural umami flavor profile that improves the taste and sensory experience of foods.
Biospringer by Lesaffre has a wide range of yeast-based ingredients to reduce sodium salt content in their products by up to 30%. Through this page, you will better understand how yeast extract can help you face all the main challenges you may have when reformulating your food product.
The reasons why food industry focuses on salt reduction.
Difference between salt and sodium.
Salt supplies the body with two essential nutrients: sodium and chloride. These elements are vital for various bodily functions, including blood pressure regulation and fluid balance maintenance.
However, excessive sodium intake can elevate the risk of health issues such as high blood pressure and heart disease. Therefore, it is crucial to reduce salt consumption, as this will inherently decrease sodium intake and promote better health.
Consumers want healthy food with less salt.
Consumers are increasingly aware of the role that food plays in maintaining good health. They see a nutritious diet as the number one priority to a healthy life. To eat healthier, many people are cutting back on excess sugar and fat, but also reducing salt consumption. (Innova 2023)
Food producers are in an optimal position to support the demand for reduced salt, because much of the sodium in an average diet comes from processed foods. (WHO 2023)
Manufacturers can take this opportunity to show consumers that they are developing products with less salt and emphasizing natural ingredients and healthier food. Salt reduction is already a growing trend across many food categories, including baby and toddler foods, snacks & seasonings, sauces & dressings, dairy, and beverages. (Innova 2023 survey)
33% of consumers around the world
are concerned about reducing salt in their diets.
On average, people consume more than 10 grams of salt per person, per day. The WHO wants to reduce this to 5 grams.
The World Health Organization recommends sodium reduction.
Most people consume too much sodium. To address this, WHO Member States have agreed to reduce sodium intake across the global population by 2025. However, people still consume twice as much sodium as recommended, mainly through salt in food, so a lot of work still needs to be done to reach this goal.
Reducing sodium consumption decreases the risk of high blood pressure, kidney disease, heart disease and stroke. Bringing down the global sodium intake will also improve public health by decreasing the global burden of disease (GBD), a measure of overall mortality from disease and other health risk factors. (WHO 2023)
Governments are putting pressure on food manufacturers to reduce salt or sodium levels in their food products.
Encouraged by the WHO recommendations, many governments around the world are now taking actions by setting new guidelines for the salt content in food and beverages. Food manufacturers need to comply with these new guidelines by developing products with less sodium.
Explore the map below to read more about sodium reduction in the highlighted countries.
As shown above, food manufacturers are under pressure from both WHO and governments to reduce salt and sodium in their formulations. However, reducing salt and sodium can impact consumers’ taste experience. Therefore, the priority is to find the right alternative ingredients to replace salt and sodium without compromising the sensory experience of the products.
Main challenges when reducing salt content in food
Reducing sodium without compromising on product quality and safety
Salt gives food flavor, but it does much more than that. It also offers an affordable way to guarantee good texture and to maintain food safety by prolonging shelf life. Food manufacturers will need to find a way to reduce salt ingredients without compromising on taste, texture, shelf life or price.
Taste
Food with reduced salt content has less intense flavors overall, because salt enhances other flavors. Consumers value food that tastes good.
Texture
Salt contributes to the texture of food because it retains water. This will need to be considered when developing products with reduced salt ingredients.
Shelf life
Salt extends the shelf life of products because it reduces the water activity of foods. Manufacturers will need to find another preservation method for products with less added salt.
Price
Salt is an affordable way to add flavor and texture and extend shelf life. Any alternatives to salt will need to be as cost-effective as possible.
Salt reduction is an important and difficult challenge. There is no one-size-fits-all solution that works for every product, so food manufacturers will need to be supported with a holistic approach.
Why is yeast extract a key ingredient to reduce salt in food?
Yeast extract emerges as the top substitutes for salt.
Yeast extract is currently the most popular natural salt replacement among food producers. (Innova 2023)
It was used in 41% of new food and beverage product launches with a reduced sodium claim.
Alternatives such as potassium chloride or monosodium glutamate (MSG) were used less. (Innova 2023)
Salt substitute and flavor enhancer ingredients as a % of total F&B launches tracked with a low/no/reduced sodium claim (Global, Oct 2022- Sep 2023).
How does yeast extract reduce salt in food?
Yeast extract is a popular salt replacement because it’s a sustainable ingredient with a unique taste profile that can be used in many different applications. It’s a natural-origin ingredient that is also vegan, GMO-free, gluten-free, Halal and Kosher.
Umami for less salt!
Umami is known as the fifth taste, complementing salty, sweet, sour, and bitter taste. It adds a satisfying dimension to many dishes and contributes to the overall flavor profile of foods such as meats, cheese, mushroom, fish, and vegetables. What makes yeast extract such a good replacement for salt is that it improves the flavor of foods with an umami taste. This flavor profile naturally occurs in yeast extract because it is rich in nucleotides and amino acids, which produce the umami taste.
What makes yeast extract a unique ingredient for sodium reduction?
Incorporating yeast extracts into your products can bring out the natural flavors and improve the overall taste profile. Yeast extracts add depth of flavor, increase richness, and improve mouthfeel while masking undesirable flavors. This results in a well-balanced and flavorful product.
Yeast extract not only brings taste, it also improves the overall sensory experience of food products. It is a premium ingredient that brings complexity and adds a specific signature to make your product unique. Yeast extract is a healthy solution for salt reduction as it is a natural flavoring ingredient that works just like spices.
While salt remains the least expensive solution, using yeast extract as a natural alternative brings significant benefits. It increases the taste of your final products and improves consumers’ health by reducing sodium. Additionally, yeast extracts boost the intensity of other ingredients and mask certain off-notes, enabling adjustments in ingredient contents to mitigate the cost increase.
Delicious
Yeast extracts’ natural umami taste enhances the flavor profile
Healthy alternative
Yeast extracts can replace salt and guarantee a clean label
Versatile
Yeast extracts can be used in a variety of application
Biospringer by Lesaffre, your partner for reducing salt in food formulations
At Biospringer by Lesaffre, we are aware of the challenges faced by food manufacturers who are looking to reduce sodium in their food products. This is why we have developed a wide range of yeast-based ingredients that subtly reveal the flavor of their products while allowing for significant salt reduction.
Explore Biospringer’s salt reduction solutions.
We offer three ranges of yeast-based solutions that can be used to lower the salt content in food manufacturing.
Springer®
Umami
Umami taste can help compensate for the loss of saltiness in low-salt products while maintaining flavor intensity and appeal.
Springer® Umami range of yeast extracts is naturally rich in nucleotides and amino acids, which are natural sources of umami flavors. This range of yeast extracts delivers a powerful umami taste, with varying levels of intensity to meet your specific needs and requirements.
Springer®
Reveal
Yeast’s natural components offer excellent taste properties, highlighting and magnifying flavors in food and beverage applications, including seasonings.
Springer® Reveal range of yeast extracts can unlock the full potential of your product by bringing complexity, intensifying certain notes, and creating harmony while preserving the overall taste profile.
Springer®
Coccon
Springer® Cocoon is an efficient solution for developing flavorful and healthy product formulations. Its yeast extracts, rich in kokumi compounds, balance and intensify taste profiles, providing smoothness in food products such as sauces, processed meats, seafood, meat analogues, and dairy products.
These compounds also enhance mouthfeel, delivering a lingering savory sensation that enables salt reduction without compromising flavor.
Yeast extract can also be combined with other salt substitutes.
The strength of yeast extract is that it is an adaptable and versatile ingredient that can be used in combination with other ingredients. If it is used together with other salt substitutes, yeast extract can lower the amount of sodium while simultaneously masking the off notes of other ingredients. It helps set your product apart from the competition by giving it a unique and rich taste.
Biospringer’s yeast extracts for reduced sodium applications
With Biospringer’s yeast-based ingredients you can recreate the perception of salt in many different recipes. This makes it possible to create delicious foods with less salt. Our Umami, Reveal & Cocoon ranges boost specific flavor notes that help create a balanced flavor profile in a wide variety of food applications. Find out what you can do with yeast extracts:
Snacks & seasonnings
reduced in salt
Processed meats
reduced in salt
Sauces & dressings
reduced in salt
Prepared meals
reduced in salt
Download our recipes book!
What our customers say
Makoto Takeuchi, Commercial Director of Biospringer in North East Asia
“We are currently collaborating with one of the major dashi soup manufacturer in Japan. They are using our Springer® Umami range into their no-salt, clean label dashi soup, to enhance the taste, creating a rich and satisfying experience, all without increasing the salt content.”
Yogesh Nigudkar, Biospringer Sales Manager for the Indian Subcontinent
“One of the major snack manufacturers in India is using our Springer® Umami range to reduce salt by > 20% and sodium by > 10% in their formulation. Combined with low-sodium salt, we achieved a sodium reduction of up to 40%!”
A tailor-made service with culinary experts in sodium reduction
We have a network of 6 Culinary Centers around the world that provide customized recommendations to our clients.
Each Culinary Center has expert food technologists on staff who are ready to share their knowledge about yeast extracts in different applications. Whether you’re trying to reduce salt in soups, snacks, sauces, seasonings or other foods, the Culinary Centers can help you achieve the most successful formulations. Working with yeast extracts can help food manufacturers achieve up to 30% salt reduction in their food formulations without compromising on taste.
A worldwide company with a longstanding expertise in sodium reduction
Biospringer by Lesaffre is a global company with a local presence. This enables us to combine our strong expertise with knowledge of local tastes. We work in a collaborative way to ensure that local knowledge benefits the whole company.
We have 10 manufacturing plants all over the world to ensure local and good production capacity.
At Biospringer by Lesaffre, we create responsible taste by offering a sustainable ingredient to develop healthy products with a clean label that better nourish and protect the planet.
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